Jan. 28 has been a good day for continuing streaks, however, one of the most impressive streaks in National Hockey League history came to an end on this date. Also, there were some big moments from some of the early stars of the league and a handful of the all-time great goaltenders. Let’s take our daily trip through the years on the THW time machine.
Streaks Come and Go
The NHL’s first season was big for Joe Malone of the Montreal Canadiens. On Jan. 28, 1919, he extended his goal-scoring streak to 11 games when he scored the only goal in a 5-1 loss at the Toronto Arenas. His streak began in the NHL’s very first game against the Ottawa Senators, on Dec. 1917. Malone’s goal on this night was his 25th of the season, on his way to finishing with a league-leading 44.
Three years later, on Jan. 28, 1922, Harry “Punch” Broadbent matched Malone’s streak by scoring a goal in his 11th game in a row during the Senators’ 2-1 win at the Toronto St. Pats.
Wayne Gretzky’s historic 51-game point streak ended on Jan. 28, 1984, in the Edmonton Oilers’ 4-2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings. This was an odd night for the streak to end as the Kings entered the game having given the most goals in the league. They were also starting goaltender Markus Mattsson, who was appearing in just his second NHL game. Gretzky spent nearly all of the game’s final five minutes on the ice but could not scratch out a point. He scored 61 goals and 153 points during his once-in-lifetime run.
Marcel Dionne became the first player in NHL history to get 20 goals in each of his first 17 seasons on Jan. 28, 1988, when he scored for the New York Rangers in their 5-2 win at the Philadelphia Flyers.
Mario Lemieux tied the league’s second-longest point streak on Jan. 28, 1990, when his third-period goal gave him a point in 39 straight games. He also picked up his 100th point for the sixth consecutive season in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 7-2 loss at the Buffalo Sabres.
The Florida Panthers extended their unbeaten streak to eight straight games (4-0-4) on Jan. 28, 1994, a new record for NHL expansion teams. Rookie Jesse Belanger scored a goal and added two assists to lead the Panthers in a 3-3 tie with the San Jose Sharks.
On Jan. 28, 2023, the Tampa Bay Lightning set a new team record with their 12th straight home win. Nick Perbix had three assists and Steven Stamkos extended his point streak to 11 games as the Lightning beat the Los Angeles Kings 5-2.
Hall of Fame Goaltending Moments
Jacques Plante became the first goaltender in NHL history to record six consecutive 30-win seasons on Jan. 28, 1960, when he helped the Canadiens beat the Detroit Red Wings 4-2. Jean Beliveau recorded his 500th career NHL point, in his 424th career game, with a goal and an assist.
Two years later, Chicago Blackhawks’ netminder Glenn Hall earned his 200th career victory and 43rd career shutout in a 3-0 win at the Rangers. Bobby Hull was the offensive hero with a pair of goals.
Terry Sawchuk made 27 saves for his 101st career shutout on Jan. 28, 1968, in the Kings’ 2-0 victory at the Flyers. The legendary goaltender’s first shutout with Los Angeles gave him at least one in 19 straight seasons.
Grant Fuhr became the 30th goaltender in league history to win 200 games on Jan. 28, 1989, when he and the Oilers knocked off the Kings 7-6.
Old School Memories
Howie Morenz scored his first goal with the Rangers, on Jan. 28, 1936, in a 3-2 win over the visiting Canadiens. Unfortunately, exactly one year later, while back with the Habs, his career came to an end after breaking four bones in his left leg from an awkward play along the boards. He died of heart failure on March 8, 1937, due to complications from the original injury.
Les Cunningham scored five points in one period on Jan. 28, 1940, to set an NHL record that held up until 1978 when Bryan Trottier of the New York Islanders broke it. He had two goals and three assists in the third period of the Blackhawks’ 8-1 win over Montreal.
Three years later, another early Blackhawks’ star, Max Bentley, set a team record with seven points. His four goals and three assists led the way in a 10-1 blowout of the Rangers. All four of his goals were scored in the final frame and were set up by his brother Doug.
While playing with Chicago, on Jan. 28, 1959, Ted Lindsay scored his 350th career goal in a 3-1 victory over the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
Odds & Ends
Jean Ratelle scored twice on Jan. 28, 1973, to become the 4th player in Rangers’ franchise history to score 250 goals with the team. He also added an assist as the Blueshirts beat the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs 5-2.
Mike Bossy scored his 33rd goal of the season on Jan. 28, 1978, to break Trottier’s team record for most goals by a rookie. His milestone goal helped the Islanders beat the rival Rangers 6-2.
Related – New York Islanders With 100-Point Seasons
Eight years later, Bossy’s teammate Denis Potvin scored his 271st goal, the most ever by an NHL defenseman. He broke the previous record held by Boston Bruins legend Bobby Orr in a 9-2 victory versus the Maple Leafs.
Mike Gartner scored his 300th career goal on Jan. 28, 1987, in the Washington Capitals’ 2-1 win at the Detroit Red Wings. He became the first player to score 300 goals as a member of the Caps.
On Jan. 28, 1989, 164,223 fans showed up for the 10 games on the schedule that night, setting a new single-day attendance record. There was very competitive hockey played on this date as three games ended in ties, and five were decided by one goal.
One of the one-goal games saw the Oilers beat the Kings 7-6 in Los Angeles. In the losing effort, Bernie Nicholls scored his 49th and 50th goals of the season in the team’s 50th game. He also had a team-record 13 shots on goal.
Speaking of 50 goals, on Jan. 28, 1992, Brett Hull scored for the 50th time on the season in the St. Louis Blues’ 3-3 tie at the Kings. He became the second player in league history, joining Gretzky, to have back-to-back seasons of 50 goals scored in fewer than 50 games. Also, in this game, veteran forward Dave Taylor became the first player in Kings’ history to play in 1,000 games.
That same night, Neal Broten set a new Minnesota North Stars record by playing in his 761st game. He scored a shorthanded goal to help in a 4-3 win at the Hartford Whalers. Three years later, as a member of the New Jersey Devils, Broten became just the third U.S.-born player to appear in 1,000 NHL games during a 3-1 win over the Panthers.
Rick Tocchet scored his 400th NHL goal on Jan. 28, 1999, in the Phoenix Coyotes’ 4-2 loss at the Flyers. He became the 52nd member of the 400-goal club and joined Pat Verbeek as the only player to score 400 goals and rack up 2,000 penalty minutes.
Prior to their game against the Capitals on Jan. 28, 2022, the Dallas Stars retired Sergei Zubov‘s No. 56. He played his final 12 seasons in Dallas and helped them win a Stanley Cup in 1999. The Hall-of-Famer finished his career as the Stars/Minnesota North Stars leader among defensemen in games played (839), goals (111), assists (438), and points (549).
On Jan. 28, 2023, Jordan Binnington became only the sixth goalie in St. Louis Blues franchise history to appear in 200 games, joining Mike Liut, Jake Allen, Curtis Joseph, Grant Fuhr, and Greg Millen in the feat.
Aleksander Barkov hit the 600-point milestone on Jan. 28, 2023, when he notched a goal and two assists in the Panthers’ 4-3 victory over the Bruins. He joined Jonathan Huberdeau as the only players in Panthers history to reach the milestone.
Columbus Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner played his 628th game in the NHL on this night in 2023, passing Cam Atkinson for second in their history behind Rick Nash (674). The Blue Jackets couldn’t cap the milestone off with a win, though as they fell to the Seattle Kraken 3-1.
Happy Birthday to You
So far, a total of 27 NHL players were born on Jan. 28. The most successful of this lot are Summit Series hero Paul Henderson (81), Colin Campbell (71), Mark Napier (68), Stan Smyl (66), Normand Rochefort (63), Michal Pivonka (58), Colin Fraser (39), Dan Carcillo (39), David Kase (27), Jeffery Viel (27), and Alex Newhook (23).
*Originally constructed by Greg Boysen
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